Baseball offering more mental health support to players

Kathy Willens

Published
2:45 pm EDT, Friday, April 10, 2015

FILE - In this May 29, 2013, file photo, New York Mets first base coach Tom Goodwin (26) congratulates Mets Rick Ankiel (16) who hit a ninth-inning RBI-single in a 9-4 victory over the New York Yankees in an interleague baseball game at Yankee Stadium in New York. Ankiel was one of baseball’s top pitching prospects when he broke into the majors with St. Louis in 1999. But he struggled with his control in the playoffs in 2000, throwing five wild pitches in his first postseason appearance, and was never the same pitcher again. He restarted his career as an outfielder and made it back to the majors, finishing with a .240 batting average, 76 homers and 251 RBIs in 11 seasons. Ankiel joining the Nationals organization in January to work with minor leaguers as a life skills coordinator. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)

FILE - In this May 29, 2013, file photo, New York Mets first base coach Tom Goodwin (26) congratulates Mets Rick Ankiel (16) who hit a ninth-inning RBI-single in a 9-4 victory over the New York Yankees in an

FILE - In this May 29, 2013, file photo, New York Mets first base coach Tom Goodwin (26) congratulates Mets Rick Ankiel (16) who hit a ninth-inning RBI-single in a 9-4 victory over the New York Yankees in an interleague baseball game at Yankee Stadium in New York. Ankiel was one of baseball’s top pitching prospects when he broke into the majors with St. Louis in 1999. But he struggled with his control in the playoffs in 2000, throwing five wild pitches in his first postseason appearance, and was never the same pitcher again. He restarted his career as an outfielder and made it back to the majors, finishing with a .240 batting average, 76 homers and 251 RBIs in 11 seasons. Ankiel joining the Nationals organization in January to work with minor leaguers as a life skills coordinator. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)

FILE - In this May 29, 2013, file photo, New York Mets first base coach Tom Goodwin (26) congratulates Mets Rick Ankiel (16) who hit a ninth-inning RBI-single in a 9-4 victory over the New York Yankees in an

FILE - In this May 29, 2013, file photo, New York Mets first base coach Tom Goodwin (26) congratulates Mets Rick Ankiel (16) who hit a ninth-inning RBI-single in a 9-4 victory over the New York Yankees in an interleague baseball game at Yankee Stadium in New York. Ankiel was one of baseball’s top pitching prospects when he broke into the majors with St. Louis in 1999. But he struggled with his control in the playoffs in 2000, throwing five wild pitches in his first postseason appearance, and was never the same pitcher again. He restarted his career as an outfielder and made it back to the majors, finishing with a .240 batting average, 76 homers and 251 RBIs in 11 seasons. Ankiel joining the Nationals organization in January to work with minor leaguers as a life skills coordinator. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)